I took the Eurostar “snow train” to the French Alps to see if it was better than flying

II’d like to share some advice if I can. When Chemmy Alcott, a former downhill ski racer and current Ski Sunday host, says she’s going to take you somewhere called Hidden Valley in the French alpine resort of Tignes – as your second ski on your first day – just politely decline. Trust me on this one.

“You’re going to love it!” she said cheerfully half an hour before. And encouraged by her insatiable enthusiasm and slightly intoxicated by her bright white smile and glam platinum blonde hair, we all nodded.

Cue the screams and swearing 30 minutes later as we tried to follow her down this iconic off-piste run that winds between rock faces, tunnels and involves skis off and jumping off drops and over deep pools of water. Chemmy makes it look ridiculously easy, as if a child could do it, tackling every obstacle and whizzing through the trees like a Duracell bunny. The rest of us are decidedly less elegant. For one stretch, tired of rolling, we collectively admit defeat and leave our skis off to trudge up a steep stretch of narrow trail instead. In the next phase, we do the opposite, we climb the side of the mountain, when we are hampered by the lack of snow, which makes it impossible to continue along the route.

Through it all, he’s right: I am do I love it. The setting is incredibly beautiful and, as the name suggests, feels appropriately “hidden”. We have this wonderfully picturesque quiet pocket to ourselves, a miracle in itself when skiing somewhere as popular as this French mega-ski area in the Tarentaise Valley, shared by Tignes and the neighboring resort of Val d’Isere.

It’s not every day that I get to ski with a former Winter Olympian. But Chemmy is here for the same reason I am – to try out the rebooted snow train from the UK, which was trialled for a limited time at the start of the 2023/24 season to see if it was viable to fully revive it. The answer is an unequivocal “yes”: the service is completely sold out. Now Eurostar has announced it is returning next season, with tickets on sale from 9 July 2024 for services departing from 21 December 2024 to 2 March 2025.

There are other signs that rail travel to the Alps may become mainstream again: leading snowsports travel agency Inghams has started selling train tours instead of air travel. It’s a strong sign that reflects the brand’s confidence in ground travel as a product that consumers want. As a non-flyer since late 2019, I’m all for it – but I’d recommend it to even the most frequent flyers.

My logic is this: ski resorts are not quick and easy to reach, not even by jet. It always takes the best part of a day once you factor in the journey to the airport, hanging around, flight time and the inevitable long and winding bus transfer up the mountain (especially if you’re heading to the French Alps). Traveling by train hardly takes more time and is much more pleasant.

The Snow Train runs from London St Pancras on Saturdays and returns on Sundays, going direct to Lille on the outbound leg, where passengers will disembark and transfer to a former Thalys train, now Eurostar – but without the need to change platforms. Then it races to Chambery, Albertville, Moutiers-Salins-Brides-Les-Bains, Aime-la-Plagne and Bourg-Saint-Maurice, from where tourists can move by road to the smogasboard of French resorts.

The advantages of traveling by rail are compelling

We hopped into Bourg after a journey of just over eight hours; Les Arcs is the nearest resort, directly above the town and accessible by cable car directly up the mountain. But Tignes, Val d’Isere and the Three Valleys resorts, the largest linked ski area in the world, are all within easy reach. Our transfer to Tignes took about 40 minutes.

The advantages of traveling by rail are compelling. For starters, luggage space is much more generous than what you’ll find on a budget flight: two bags and your ski or snowboard gear. Not to mention the lack of liquid restrictions, meaning you can take full-sized drinks and all your toiletries (without having to separate them into a clear plastic bag). And you’ll spend the trip in relative comfort, with much more space than on an airplane and a storage table big enough to fit a laptop. There is even Wi-Fi available for most of the journey.

During our pre-Christmas stay, we were incredibly lucky, blessed with both abundant snow on the slopes and several days of blazing sun and blue skies. Thanks to this, riding on the groomed slopes and partying at the tables in the legendary apres bar Folie Douce is pure joy.

We’re really leaning towards the former, one day we’ll attempt the ‘four turns’: a challenge where you have to get to the four furthest points of the ski area. It’s a catch-the-first-elevators, skip-the-drunk-lunch adventure that’s only possible when you really step on the gas. I feel a rush of joy as we slide down the steep, wide slope of the iconic black Face run into Val d’Isere, the snow as creamy as freshly churned butter. The only way to enjoy this sensational World Cup race in these conditions is to get there early – before the sun and crowds of other skiers do their damage.

From there we race to catch the Les Montets lift to the highest point in Val d’Isere at 3,197m, then descend 1,267m to Le Fornet before catching a bus and a bunch of ski lifts to Tignes-les-Brevieres at the furthest right of the ski area area (where we finally stop briefly to eat). Then it’s the final push to the top: the windswept Grande Motte glacier at 3,456m. We make the final lift of the day and the subsequent lift by the teeth, the burst of danger adding excitement to what would otherwise be a forgettable, if fun, day of skiing.

That night, I’m back at Ingham’s Hotel Rosset chalet-hotel, and I’m particularly grateful for the indoor spa, with its muscle-melting sauna and steam room to iron out any mistakes – not to mention the generous slices of cake in the lounge, left over from afternoon tea, before they take center stage canapés and a three-course dinner. It’s here that we learn that Inghams isn’t just trying to make snow holidays more sustainable through their chosen form of transport. Food is also a big part of the equation, with enhanced vegetarian options, a mandatory meatless evening and the most impressive bespoke food and waste management system, which calculates the exact amount of ingredients per order – down to the last gram – to eradicate as much food waste as physically possible.

It’s encouraging to see sustainability being put at the forefront of skiing. And as we wrap up our great pre-season trip, instead of the dread that settled in anticipation of a day of buses, airports, and planes, I feel something entirely different: excitement at the prospect of catching the snow train. Home. All aboard for a different kind of ski vacation.

Travel essentials

Inghams Ski is offering eight nights, B&B, at Hotel Le Paquis in Tignes, from £1,258pp for departures on 4 January 2025. Includes all train travel, transfers, an extra day of skiing and an overnight stay in Bourg-Saint-Maurice.

Eurostar snow trains operate from 21 December 2024 to 2 March 2025; from £139, one way.

Read more: Why it’s not too late to learn to ski as an adult